Where Is the Vegan Julia Child? Readers React to ‘Vegan Glam’

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Artichoke oysters with kelp caviar at Crossroads in Los Angeles.CreditCreditElizabeth Lippman for The New York Times

By The New York Times

Sept. 30, 2015

Readers were quick to respond to Jeff Gordinier’s article about the movement to bring the vegan lifestyle to the masses. While many discussed the merits of a plant-based diet, others talked about the need to make vegan choices accessible to more than just the wealthy. Selections from those comments are below; some have been edited for space.

Couldn’t agree more with the theory that vegan diets are as healthy, and more, than vegetarian or omnivore. But they do require an extra effort in shopping and cooking in ways far outside of the mainstream. Ms. Piatt is a chef dedicated to selling the lifestyle, as is her husband. They have become proponents for the lifestyle. It would be much more helpful to see how the average working person makes veganism accessible. We need a Julia Child for veganism.

I’m not well-off, and I’m a serious foodie. However, I went vegan three years ago, and I love it. My tastes have changed, so now I don’t miss the stuff I used to eat. Everything can be veganized. It’s not hard once you make the switch. Best thing I ever did.

Not everyone has the luxury of dining with a world-class chef or rubbing elbows with celebs in a trendy Los Angeles restaurant. If this movement is to succeed, it needs to promote easy and affordable ways to make delicious vegan food.

I was anti-vegan for a long time. But as this article states, it is becoming more mainstream, and the recipes are getting better. We are trying to eat at least two vegan dinners a week and make meat and cheese a side dish as opposed to the main event on other nights. I am enjoying the challenge.

Most vegans I know prefer a delicious, nutritious meal at home or a place they can trust that serves quality food. It’s not about the glamour. It’s about eating healthy, good tasting food and not contributing to the suffering of animals with your food choices.

Pasta pomodoro is a classic dish that also happens to be vegan. A simple pizza without cheese is a vegan delight. Don’t tell me about that glorious salad with micro greens and beets. Show me. Vegans have to stop explaining and just convince us with food, glorious food.

I respect the dietary decisions that people make for themselves. I make dinner parties for people with a variety of dietary convictions. There will be something that anyone can eat. But what I don’t try to do is redefine food by calling something a burger that has no meat, a cheese that is not made with milk, etc. The food illustrated in the article looks, and I’m sure is, delicious. But vegans have an opportunity to create a cuisine that could be as honest in its ingredients, ethics, healthfulness and culinary importance as it is in its nomenclature. Create a new vocabulary for a revolutionary diet.